Ribbons for You

In the two years since the devastating earthquake in Haiti, the Red Cross and other humanitarian organizations have made amazing progress toward rebuilding the country. But, there is still so much work to be done. Visit the Red Cross’ Haiti progress report or make a donation at: http://www.redcross.org/Haiti

homemade salsa wedding favors, decorated with our 5/8″ Personalized Ribbon for Favors in hunter with silver imprint

Once thought to be a dying art, home canning is gaining popularity again, especially with green-thumbed or culinarily inclined brides. If you’ve been on the receiving end of a gift of homemade preserves, salsa, or other delicacies, you know that if you give a homemade canned favor, you’re favoring your guests with a preserve that’s nothing like what they can get at the store. Everything tastes better when it’s been made with love!

If you’re new to canning and want to give homemade canned favors at your wedding, it’s wise to enlist the help of an experienced canner. You may have a grandmother or aunt with years of experience putting up preserves, and she’d probably be delighted to dust off the old canner for a special occasion. In addition to the intergenerational fun that can come from canning together, experienced canners will bring the know-how to help you get past the little slip-ups that can daunt beginning canners, and help give you the courage to pull those cans out of the boiling water with nothing but a pair of tongs!

If you don’t know any canning experts, you can learn to do it yourself using the many resources available to new canners. For starters, every new canner needs to get their hands on the Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving, which is revered as the bible of modern canning and includes all of the information you need to begin canning safely and deliciously. It’s also a great idea to attend a canning workshop in your area; often you can find them through your farmer’s market, community college, or CSA. A workshop will give you the hands-on experience you need to get started, and put you in touch with local experts.

If you plan to can preserves for your wedding favors, make sure your favor batch is not your first batch! Experiment with making a small batch of preserves at least a month or two before your wedding– any kind will do, though if you can do a small batch of whatever you’d like to give as a favor, you’ll gain the most valuable experience. The experts suggest that beginners try out something acidic as their first project, so consider canning pickles, mustard, or a high-acid vegetable preserve like salsa or tomato sauce when you’re just starting out.

Making a homemade canned favor is a fun project for the bride and groom to do together. Be ready for the kitchen to get very steamy… from that hot canning pot, of course!

Even if you’ve been canning for years, you’ll need at least two people to get the job done, making it a perfect opportunity to bring the groom into the favor making process. There are countless opportunities to peel, chop, wash, smash, and season during a canning session, and anyone from a master chef to a novice dishwasher can get in on the action. Bringing the groom into the kitchen with you will also help keep things interesting — the canning process is time consuming! Depending on how much you’re canning, it may take a full day or two to do them all, so you’ll definitely want to spend that time with someone who makes you smile. Continue Reading →

These jam jars were decorated with our Happy Holidays Ribbon 5/8″ in hunter

It’s the most wonderful time of the year at Regal Ribbons — our presses are humming with cheer, printing our holiday ribbons for the most stylish gift wrappers in America. There’s still time to get holiday ribbon for wrapping your Christmas presents, but you’ll need to hurry! The last day to order for delivery by Christmas Eve is this Friday, December 10th. But, if you’ve waited until the last minute to order your holiday ribbon, don’t despair! You can get faster service at a discounted rate from now until Friday, 12/10/2010.

To apply this special offer to your order, select “Faster Service”, the two-week delivery option at checkout, and use coupon code HOLIDAYRUSH. The coupon will reduce the cost of the Faster service to 12.95, and you’ll get your order within two weeks of your order date. Don’t need your order until after the holidays? You can use HOLIDAYRUSH for free Standard Service instead! This coupon expires on 12/10/2010 and applies to orders shipped within the Continental US only.